Kyle VanHemert of Gizmodo writes: "AT&T's latest idea is actually kind of brilliant on multiple levels: totally free Wi-Fi in Times Square. And it could be how they save their network.
It's no coincidence that AT&T already runs the largest Wi-Fi network in the country—20,000 hotspots in all—providing free Wi-Fi (to AT&T customers) in the kinds of places that people like to hang out and gobble data on their phones: Starbucks, Barnes & Noble, and McDonald's. The Times Square Wi-Fi project is a pilot program, and depending on the results, possibly the first of many dense, high-traffic urban areas AT&T blankets in Wi-Fi.
Upfront, it's good publicity, with AT&T scoring major brownie points from folks for providing a legitimately useful service for free in a perfect location."